I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to spend the next 3 decades counting calories every few months to lose weight that I gained after getting off a diet.

And this is where my tough love comes into play…

Just because losing weight was easy the first time around, doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy this time around (or the next).

4 Reasons Why Weight Loss Isn’t Easy This Time Around

For one, you have it stuck in your head how easy it was when you were 21 years old and trying to lose weight. Let’s face it… being in your 20s and being in your 30s (or 40s or 50s) is a lot different.

Your body is different, your mentality is different, and losing weight is going to be different as well.

A Piece Of Cake Syndrome

I have found that when we think it’s going to be a piece of cake is when people have the hardest time getting started. They have this idea of “oh it’s going to be so fast and simple once I start that I can just put it off one more day.”

The next day rolls around and surprise, surprise, it gets pushed once more.

Hey, I can’t argue… this is my problem. I know I am not far off from my goals when it comes to my body composition and it’s because I am almost there, that I haven’t made it a real priority. I need to bite the bullet and just get there.

If you’re suffering from the piece of cake syndrome, recognize it and get started. Stop putting things off!

A Case Of The Dead Metabolism

Every time you gain weight and then drop it with a low calorie diet of some sort, you do harm to your metabolism, you slow that baby down.

Let’s break it down real fast…

If you are used to eating 2200 calories a day, then suddenly you decide to go on a crash diet and start to eat just 1,000 calories a day your body goes into metabolic shock. It thinks your starving and tries to bring your body back to homeostasis. It does this by cutting muscle mass (not fat) to bring down your metabolism so your body doesn’t require as many calories.

Basically, it adjust so that it needs just 1,000 calories. But what happens when you drop the weight and start eating “normal” again? Your metabolism is close do dead, so you pack on weight all over again.

Then you have to diet again… this time down to 900 calories a day.

See the trend? It’s bad! We all love food, right? We don’t want to survive off 900 calories a day! So don’t do it. Stop the yo-yo dieting.

A ‘Woman’ Thing

As much as I would love to say that aging doesn’t have an affect on weight loss, it does. When we were younger, we had raging hormones which helped keep our metabolism running strong.

Remember, I used to be able to eat an entire pizza!

With age, hormones change, and if you’re not prepared for it already with a good diet and exercise program, it will take it’s toll on your body. Suddenly hair is sprouting out of unwanted places, and fat is accumulating in places you never thought possible.

Back in the day, you may have been able to run a few miles each day to see the weight just melt away, but with age this most often isn’t the case. You see, as you age muscle mass is lost at a some what rapid rate… and that brings down your metabolism. Running doesn’t help.

This is why strength training is so important for women of all ages. it’s going to help keep your muscle mass and help to keep your metabolism revved up!

A Case Of Life

And finally… when you lost weight successfully the first time, how was your life? How busy were you? Were you married? Did you have kids?

There are other factors that go into successful weight loss. Perhaps last time you were able to devote all of your attention on you. Now, you have a husband that wants to eat out all the time, kids that refuse to eat anything but mac-n-cheese and pizza, and you find yourself sitting at an office for 8 hours a day.

This isn’t to make you think you can’t do it, you can. But it’s to stress the idea that you shouldn’t compare this go around with previous ones.

Life changes and you have to change with it. You have to acknowledge the issues that you’ll face and come up with a plan of attack!

Get a workout in first thing in the morning or during lunch.

Tell your husband you need his support.

Talk to the kids and let them know that mommy will not be eating mac n cheese any more! Start on a more whole food diet with the entire family.

What about you…

Tell me about your experience with weight loss… was it easy? Hard? Still fighting?

I hear ya on all these things! I wish I could go back to being 21 and just freeze everything about my body at that state. My biggest problem is silly habits I’ve picked up since then like sitting on the couch watching tv and eating or making popcorn and snacks for a movie not because I’m hungry but because it’s habit. And definitely on the life changing, allergies are a huge buzz kill on working out ><

http://clockwork-life.tumblr.com/ Molly

Sheena – did you know that exercise can help you lessen your allergies? I never knew this until about a month ago, but studies show that the increased blood flow that’s caused by exercise can actually help move allergens through the body faster. Then, rather than sitting and making your nose itch, sinuses swell, and eyes water, the allergens are eliminated by your kidneys. It’s hard to get moving at first when you have a stuffy nose, but take comfort in the fact that it should help clear up those seasonal sniffles.

You are bang on with #3! Most of my clients are well over 40 and something ‘magical’ happens at this age. Changing hormones can actually encourage fat retention….

http://www.fitwomensweekly.com TaylorR

Thanks Tamara! It’s hard to explain it to clients without them feeling almost helpless. Darn age! haha, but results still come

http://www.mommyoutsidethebox.ca/ Mommy Outside

Oh man I’ve had about enough of this “magic”! It’s so true. 40 hit and my body just changed. It makes me work twice as hard now!

http://www.fitwomensweekly.com TaylorR

Yup! There is no magic solution, all we can do is make a conscious effort to live healthy!

http://day-with-kt.com Kim

I’ve never had huge amounts of weight to lose – and for the last 10+ years I’ve only fluctuated by about 5 pounds or so but usually it’s about a 3 pound difference. That said, it is all about trying to keep what I have in the shape I want it to be – and that is definitely harder at my current age!!!

These are all great points about losing weight loss, especially the point about the calories. So many think that cutting calories is the key, but in fact you should eat MORE the more you’re working out! Some people always look at me like I’m crazy when I tell them this

http://www.fitwomensweekly.com TaylorR

Yes, I get the same looks of insanity when I try to explain it too!

http://eatteachblog.com Divya @ Eat. Teach. Blog.

Yesssss, – A case of life is hitting me hard lately.

When I first lost a ton of weight, it was because I was working at an after-school program/finishing up college. Meaning the amount of hours I worked per day was about 6!

Now, I’m working an AVERAGE of 12 hours each day and I get so frustrated with myself that it’s harder. But I just need to realize that my workload and stress DOUBLED. So it’s not going to be as simple to fit in time to work out/grocery shop/etc.

http://www.fitwomensweekly.com TaylorR

Don’t get down on yourself. Life is busy and it just means you have to be more patient with yourself. You’ll get there, just not like when you were 22!

http://BarrAndTable.com Brittany @ Barr & Table

Sooo what if I’m still in my 20s and my body still won’t cooperate? Haha (I’m not really laughing..) darn body.

Mary M

I fit right in with ALL of your comments! I never had a weight problem, and always told myself I didn’t want to gain the “menopause” weight. I always worked out 4-5 time a week, now as I have become older I have fallen off the wagon. I am in my early 60s, it seems like (the weight gain) it happened overnight. The weight gain around the middle, I look at myself and wonder where in the heck did this come from. I can’t fit in any of my clothes anymore, I now wear things that can hide the belly and hip weight. So depressing! I know I need to get back to exercising. I start exercising, and then I instantly want to see results, but don’t then I get discouraged and depressed. I need some motivation, some help! Thanks for listening.

Becky

I’ve gained and lost the same 50 pounds several times in my life (and more than than once or twice Every.single.time it gets harder. Now, at 31 years old, I’m struggling with 10lbs I’ve put back on this winter. It’s the proverbial “last 10 pounds” that now I can not seem to get back off.

http://www.frenchinspirationblog.com Karen – Fit in France

I lost 20 pounds about 10 years back through weight watchers… I have managed to keep it off but it was a total change in lifestyle. Keeping active, limiting portion size, more fruits & veggies, less soda… lots of small tweaks.

I always felt it was harder to maintain weight loss than it was to loose the weight. The only long term & permanent was to do it is lifestyle change… I see eating whole foods and exercising as an investment in my health, but it does become habit at some point.

http://www.fitwomensweekly.com TaylorR

Yes, it is much harder to keep it off than to lose it! that’s why so many who lose weight gain it back. Great job maintaining!! Yes, paying for better food is an investment we believe in too!